osmosis
/ɒzˈməʊsɪs/ (bre, ipa) · /ɑːzˈməʊsɪs/ (ame, ipa) · /äz-ˈmō-səs äs-/ (ame, mw)
osmosis — 名詞
1. the movement of water or another liquid through a thin wall of a cell, plant, or
滲透作用
液體穿透半透膜的生物化學現象
the movement of water or another liquid through a thin wall of a cell, plant, or other living tissue, from a weaker solution to a stronger one until both sides have the same strength.
Élise watched the experiment as water entered the cell by osmosis.
Élise 觀察著實驗，看著水經由滲透作用進入細胞。
by osmosis (typical adverbial pattern)
Plant roots take up water from the wet soil through osmosis.
植物的根透過滲透作用從濕潤的土壤中吸收水分。
through osmosis + biological subject (plant)
The biology teacher used a potato slice in salty water to show osmosis to the class.
生物老師用泡在鹽水裡的馬鈴薯片向全班示範滲透作用。
Red blood cells can burst when water moves into them by osmosis.
當水經由滲透作用進入紅血球時，紅血球可能會破裂。
- diffusion
broader term for any spreading of particles; osmosis is specifically diffusion of a liquid through a membrane.
文法句型
by osmosis
through osmosis
用法筆記
Almost always uncountable; treated as a process, not a countable event. Common verbs: 'occur by osmosis', 'take place through osmosis', 'water moves by osmosis'.
常見錯誤
2. the way someone slowly takes in knowledge, ideas, or habits without trying — for
潛移默化
在接觸中不知不覺吸收知識或習慣
the way someone slowly takes in knowledge, ideas, or habits without trying — for example, picking up a language just by living among speakers, or learning office customs by sitting near experienced colleagues.
Karim picked up Italian by osmosis during his three years in Naples.
Karim 在那不勒斯待了三年，義大利文就這樣潛移默化學會了。
pick up [language] by osmosis — core figurative pattern
New interns at the law firm seem to learn court customs by osmosis from senior colleagues.
律師事務所裡的新進實習生似乎透過潛移默化，就從資深同事身上學到了法庭慣例。
learn [skill/knowledge] by osmosis
Lan absorbed her grandmother's recipes through osmosis, never once writing them down.
Lan 在潛移默化中學會了奶奶的食譜，從來沒有寫下任何一道。
Children of musicians often learn rhythm by osmosis long before any formal lessons.
音樂家的孩子往往還沒正式上課，就已經透過潛移默化掌握了節奏感。
After living next door to a baker for two years, Mira understood the timing of every loaf almost by osmosis.
在烘焙師傅家隔壁住了兩年後，Mira 幾乎是潛移默化地掌握了每一爐麵包的時間。
- absorption
more neutral; lacks the 'effortless, unconscious' connotation of osmosis.
- assimilation
formal; emphasises the result of being taken in, rather than the gradual process.
- study
denotes deliberate effort, the opposite of osmosis.
文法句型
learn by osmosis
absorb by osmosis
pick up by osmosis
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: this sense is figurative and refers to people absorbing knowledge or habits, not liquids. Almost always with 'by' or 'through'; never used with an article.